The story of David Boone reads like a movie. David was homeless all throughout high school, sleeping in the park, staying with friends, and getting caught up in unnecessary beefs with local gang members. The nights were cold and the days were long, and there were days when David wasn’t sure where his food or shelter would be coming from. Working through all of this and holding onto his dream, David found his way to acceptance at Harvard University.Cleveland.com talks about David’s journey, and it is one of the most-inspiring stories I’ve ever heard.

His book bag became his pillow, stuffed with textbooks first — for height, he says — and papers on top for padding.In the morning, David would duck into his friend Eric’s house after Eric’s parents left early for work so he could shower and dress before heading to class at Cleveland’s specialized MC2STEM High School. David expects to graduate from there next month as salutatorian of the new school’s first graduating class.“I’d do my homework in a rapid station, usually Tower City since they have heat, and I’d stay wherever I could find,” he said.